1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to a hand-operated tool, and more particularly to a tool for extracting an elongated object, especially a staple, nail or tack, that is embedded in the surface of a body, such as a wooden board.
2. Background Information
In construction, more labor means higher cost. A small amount of time saved in pulling each spent staple, nail or tack from various surfaces in a building during a remodeling project can mean significant labor savings when the time savings for all of the craftsmen for the duration of the remodeling project are tallied. In short, a better extraction tool allows talented craftsmen to spend their time on more challenging tasks.
Generally, various tools for helping carpenters and other workers remove spent nails or the like from surfaces are known. Unfortunately, nail heads are often partially or wholly broken off when a molding or other surface is removed during remodeling. There are also many new types of nails and staples being manufactured today. Many of these new types of nails have smooth finishes and are more slender than nails used in previous generations. Pneumatic finishing nails, for example, ordinarily have a very small, thin head. Wiring staples are also bothersome to remove. They are installed, often every 16 inches, over electrical wires to hold the wires in place on wall studs. Modern nails and staples also vary widely in length and diameter. They can be difficult to remove without bending or snapping them, or splintering or otherwise damaging the wooden and other surfaces in which they are embedded.
Practically speaking, nails, tacks, and staples do not often present themselves in an erect fashion for removal from boards and other surfaces. A significant percentage of nails, tacks, and staples to be removed are smashed against the surface, or otherwise bent and/or broken off.
Unfortunately, it is difficult to consistently pull a variety of nail types, as well as tacks and staples, under varying conditions using currently available tools. Some workers attempt to use conventional pliers or channel locks to pull nails through wooden boards, which often causes portions of the nail to break or shear off. Available tools often work only on nails which present a substantially straight and significant shaft segment for a nail puller tool to grasp. When a carpenter has to straighten nails in order to use a nail pulling tool, time is wasted. When he or she has to carry several tools for nail, tack and staple removal, and pause to select which tool to use to remove each nail, time is wasted. This is particularly inconvenient when the worker is in an awkward position on a ladder or on a roof or in a crawl space, for example. Incorrect staple, nail or tack removal can result in damage to the wooden surface, such as gouges or holes. In addition, worker frustration and the high physical demands of construction-related jobs are decreased somewhat when nails and the like can be more easily removed.